Having become for some the symbol of the interference of the pesticide industry in research and agriculture in Quebec, Christian Overbeek is the subject of an investigation by the trustee of the Ordre des agronomes du Québec (OAQ), learned The duty. Six years after a highly publicized crisis to which he was linked, the independence of agronomists is still disputed. Against the backdrop of what many see as the inaction of the Order, it is now Benoît Pharand, who has worked for agrochemical companies and who is registered as a lobbyist on their behalf, who is preparing to take over its leadership. .
In 2018, Mr. Overbeek was linked to a crisis at the Grain Research Center (CEROM), where researchers accused him of putting pressure on pesticide research and publicly discrediting their results.
He defended interests “incompatible with the public interest”, wrote the agronomist Louis Robert to sound the alert, in an internal note from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food of Quebec sent to the Duty. Mr. Robert was then fired, then reinstated, and the case now bears his name.
Mr. Overbeek was then an agronomist, president of the board of directors of CEROM, president of Producteurs de grains du Québec (PGQ) and lobbyist for a group opposing new regulations restricting the use of pesticides.
At the same time as CEROM was carrying out research on neonicotinoids, these pesticides called “bee killers”, Mr. Overbeek defended their use publicly.
The Public Protector criticized him in his annual report last fall for having “recurringly placed himself in a situation of conflict of interest” as well as having committed a “serious breach” of ethical standards and deontology.
The OAQ, however, did not react publicly to these accusations. Rather, it was the anonymous complaint of an individual that triggered the current investigation, confirmed The duty.
In an interview, outgoing president Martine Giguère emphasizes that the trustee’s investigation process is “completely independent of the board of directors” and that she was therefore not informed. This process remains “confidential”, she recalls.
Another person at the OAQ, who asked to remain anonymous because they are not authorized to comment on the matter, says that “word is already circulating” about the investigation.
Christian Overbeek declined our interview request. The PGQ, which he has chaired since 2006, “will not make any comments on this subject”, a public relations specialist writes to us.
In 2019, he described the comments reported by CEROM researchers and Louis Robert as “false allegations” and “unfounded”. In a speech given to members of the PGQ in March 2022, Mr. Overbeek said he was “cleared” by the Public Protector. He left the presidency of CEROM in 2019 and is now a retired member of the OAQ: he therefore no longer has the right to practice the profession of agronomist, but the investigation can nevertheless relate to his years of employment. ‘exercise.
Immobilism
The agronomist Louis Robert assures that he is not at the origin of this complaint. It is difficult to explain why the Order did not act before: “The CA did not need to investigate to intervene, because the information was completely public,” he said on the telephone.
According to Mr. Robert, the Order’s board of directors should have reacted “at the first instance” and well before, or at the very least when the Public Protector’s report was made public.
He had the power to decide to open an investigation, “which he did not do and which is questionable”, maintains another agronomist, who requested anonymity for fear of harming the exercise of his profession . “If they had wanted to show that public protection is important and that we take it seriously, it would have been an exemplary way for the boots to walk the talk. » “It’s a form of immobility”, in his opinion.
Regarding the developments surrounding Mr. Overbeek’s case, Mr. Robert sees it as a “symptom” of a larger problem: “It’s the tip of the iceberg. The conflict of interest situation is institutionalized. »
An investigation by the trustee could result in a complaint to the disciplinary council, which has the power to impose limitations, suspension or even removal. “It’s often more of a slap on the wrist,” says Mr. Robert.
Six years after the Louis Robert affair, four and a half years after an imposing parliamentary commission on pesticides and almost two years after the death on the order paper of a bill, a crucial situation has not changed in the eyes of many observers: an agronomist can both sell a pesticide or fertilizer and recommend it.
The roles of input seller (pesticides or fertilizers) and agronomic advisor have not been formally separated, even if agronomists have had to declare their interests to the Order since 2021.
Martine Giguère affirms that “everything is in place” for the modernization of the Agronomists Act. “We have done our thinking, we are ready to move forward to work on our arrangements in a more precise way,” she indicates. The Order is awaiting support from the Professions Office, she explains.
As for the bill that died on the order paper in 2022, the office of the Minister of Agriculture, André Lamontagne, has not confirmed that another version would be presented. “The analyzes are continuing and we are still committed to modernizing the supervision of agronomic practice,” we instead indicated in a written declaration.
New appointment
Furthermore, the Order approved last Thursday the appointment of Benoît Pharand to the position of general director. Until then, he was president and CEO of Réseau végétal Québec, a group of seed, fertilizer and pesticide companies. The association includes among its members Bayer, Syngenta, Corteva and Sollio, which manufacture and sell pesticides in Quebec.
Mr. Pharand is also registered as a lobbyist for a mandate which runs until November 21, 2024, according to the register, but he has already withdrawn from his previous functions, he assures in an interview with The duty.
“I have always held management positions. […] I think that at the Order, they didn’t hire me for who I represented [avant], but for who I am,” he says. He has been an agronomist for almost 25 years.
As for his role as a lobbyist, he insists that his neutrality as director will not be tainted: “I close one mandate and I open another. » He also recalls that any person “who wants to sit down with the government” must be registered in the register of lobbyists, “regardless of the content of the discussions”.
He will be in position to “execute the mandates” given by the board of directors, he recalls. “There is a board of directors, and I am the spokesperson for this council”, also underlines Mme Giguère, the outgoing president. Mr. Pharand “will have to implement the council’s orientations”, and not guide its position, she said.